Music teacher Stacy Caldwell recognized the special talent 10 year old Alijah had when she heard him play a bucket drum during class.
The way Alijah improvised a quick rhythmic cadence on a plastic blue bucket, left Caldwell stunned and impressed.
On probing him if he had music lessons before, she got to know he was self-taught.
He told her that he used to have a set of drums, but they were burned a couple of years ago when his house caught fire.
Alijah used his God given talent at school, at church and even at a local Guitar Center music store.
Caldwell, who was a teacher at Wilmeth Elementary School in McKinney, Texas, was convinced that she had to give him the right tools to excel as a musician.
She was taken in not only with Alijah’s talent but also his character, which she describes as kind and compassionate, always with a smile in the hallway.
He was so special in her eyes that Caldwell rallied her friends and community to buy him a brand new set of drums.
So she called him to her class and said that she had a very special surprise for him.
She first encouraged him by telling him he was a talented musician and that she really liked not only his passion for music, but also his character.
Alijah’s eyes lit up with joy when he watched Caldwell lift a cover off several awkwardly-shaped objects in her music room to reveal a beautiful drum set.
He gave Caldwell a big hug as she told him who’d bought him the set, and what else was there for him as well.
She told him that other community members wanted to gift him an electric drum set, which was best for home practice as it is light and comes with adjustable volume control.
“We all believe in you and we want you to have the tools that you need to be successful,” Caldwell told the boy.
With the right direction and love, our young people can be molded and put on the right career path, this only comes with generosity and community help.